Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a governor Prime minister: Willy Telavi Tuvalu has no political parties. Allegiances revolve around personalities and geography. The 15-member parliament is popularly elected every four years. The prime minister is chosen by MPs.
President: Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
Population
10,619
42,192,494
Life Expectancy
65.110 years
77.140 years
Capital City
Buenos Aires
Largest city
Funafuti (population: 4,749)
Buenos Aires (population: 13,076,300)
Human Development Index
0
0.86
GDP per capita
$17,700 US
Literacy Rate
%
97.2%
Corruption Perception Index
NA
2.9
Percentage of Women in Parliament
0%
39.8%
Wealthiest Citizens
NA
Gregorio Perez Companc & family ($1.8bn US)
Unemployment Rate
7.200%
Death Penalty
Abolished
Abolished
Political System
constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy
republic
Independence date
9 July 1816 (from Spain)
Religions
Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6%
nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%
Languages
Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui)
Spanish (official), Italian, English, German, French
Exports
soybeans and derivatives, petroleum and gas, vehicles, corn, wheat
External Debt
$136,800,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
Argentine pesos (ARS) per US dollar - 3.1636 (2008 est.), 3.1105 (2007), 3.0543 (2006), 2.9037 (2005), 2.9233 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
0
6
Location
Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia
Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay
Area
26 km sq
2,780,400 km sq
Coastline
24 km
4,989 km
Climate
tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March)
mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest
